ODNI, DOJ and DHS Release Unclassified Summary of Assessment on Domestic Violent Extremism...newly declassified REPORT
YOU NEED TO READ THIS TO FULLY UNDERSTAND WHAT WE ARE FACING and sorry for yelling but this is a really important report that every American should read..
I have previously explained how law enforcement views Domestic Terrorism and if the deadly January 6, 2021 insurrection qualifies as domestic terrorism, you might want to reread this article, before we address the new Joint DOJ & DHS Report. And it might be worthwhile for you to reread this article where I walked you through Director Wray’s recent Congressional Testimony. And lastly I think you should also reread this article - I walked you through the damning and devastating testimony of General Walker
Quick glossary of terms because some might not know the D.C. alphabet soup and it can be confusing:
Domestic Violent Extremists - DVE
Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists - RMVE
Militia Violent Extremists - MVE
National Counterterrorism Center - NCTC
Federal Bureau of Investigation - FBI
Department of Homeland Security - DHS
Central Intelligence Agency - CIA
Defense Intelligence Agency -DIA
Intelligence Community - IC
“…The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)today released an unclassified summary of the joint comprehensive threat assessment on domestic violent extremism. The unclassified summary is attached and will be available on DNI.gov later today.
….The assessment was prepared under the auspices of the DNI, in consultation with DOJ and DHS, and drafted by the National Counterterrorism Center, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and DHS with contributions from the Central Intelligence Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency. All agencies involved are mindful of the duty to respect privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties and to act within the authorities granted to them as they seek to put together as complete an intelligence and analytic picture as is possible.”
Domestic Violent Extremism Poses Heightened Threat in 2021
This newly unclassified report is short but there’s a lot of pertinent information1
Again I’m not in the intelligence community nor would I ever purport to be. That said I want my readers to have access to the various public reports. Because an informed reader is an informed citizen. As the ODNI Tweet states, the DOJ, the DHS and the ODNI released a NEW report specifically addressing Domestic Terrorism
Again link to the newly unclassified report https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1376981/download
I’d like to walk you through this very short report (it’s <3 pages)
The IC assesses that domestic violent extremists (DVEs) who are motivated by a range of ideologies and galvanized by recent political and societal events in the United States pose an elevated threat to the Homeland in 2021…
The IC provides the following warning as to their assessment - the subtext here is Donald Trump’s months long campaign and that of his closest surrogates - coupled with massive echo chambers like Fox News, OANN and NewsMax who all bought in to “Trump’s big lie” about the 2020 Presidential Election acted as a catalyst and directly played into the deadly Insurrection
“Newer sociopolitical developments—such as narratives of fraud in the recent general election, the emboldening impact of the violent breach of the US Capitol, conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and conspiracy theories promoting violence—will almost certainly spur some DVEs to try to engage in violence this year
Of the various assessments this one is kind of chilling to read - because it’s not only explains the radicalization but the fact that some DVEs act alone and without direction - thus one could infer the DVEs might be likened to “lone wolf” attacks which are problematic for law enforcement to thwart. I do think that the old saying “see something- say something” applies here.
“…DVE attackers often radicalize independently by consuming violent extremist material online and mobilize without direction from a violent extremist organization, making detection and disruption difficult.”
Important distinction made:
What is fascinating is the delineation being made -that under the umbrella of RMVEs there are varying subsets of categories. If you paid attention to Director Wray’s previous congressional testimony - you’ll note he repeatedly made this distinction. The assessment that RMVEs are more likely to carry out a “mass casualty event” whereas MVEs tend to target law enforcement - is a fascinating assessment.
The IC assesses that racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists (RMVEs) and militia violent extremists (MVEs) present the most lethal DVE threats, with RMVEs most likely to conduct mass-casualty attacks against civilians and MVEs typically targeting law enforcement and government personnel…
MVE threat increased last year and that it will almost certainly continue to be elevated throughout 2021 because of contentious sociopolitical factors that motivate MVEs to commit violence.
The White Supremacy threat is real. It is persistent. And it is growing. Can I just say how refreshing it is to read a Government Report and to not immediately think the report is a product of “undue political influence” because if this had been published by the previous Administration- I would immediately find the report dubious… but this is our IC going on the record
“US RMVEs who promote the superiority of the white race are the DVE actors with the most persistent and concerning transnational connections because individuals with similar ideological beliefs exist outside of the United States and these RMVEs frequently communicate with and seek to influence each other. We assess that a small number of US RMVEs have traveled abroad to network with like-minded individuals.
The copy-cat and/or out-doing the latest attack- this particular IC assessment is, chilling. Conversely it makes a lot of sense that the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, III Percenters, Army of God - viewed the deadly Jan 6th insurrection as a big “win” and they used that notoriety to both rake in donations and recruit new members
…several factors could increase the likelihood or lethality of DVE attacks in 2021 and beyond, including escalating support from persons in the United States or abroad, growing perceptions of government overreach related to legal or policy changes and disruptions, and high-profile attacks spurring follow-on attacks and innovations in targeting and attack tactics.
Earlier this month, Director Wray testified what the Jan 6th attack and had a much broader discussion of what the FBI sees. He took the extraordinary step of actually putting numbers to the “case load” -the beginning of Director Wray’s response to (I think) Senator Durbin question about any members of “Antifa” present or responsible for the deadly insurrection. The answer was no Antifa -did not play a role in the deadly insurrection. At which point Director Wray pivoted by expounding on the efforts of the FBI Domestic Terrorism Investigations. Tucked in Director Wray’s opening testimony he focused on RMVE and emphasized to lawmakers— in June of 2019, RMVEs to the FBI’s highest threat priority —“on the same level as Isis…’
Director Wray was appointed in late August 2017- at the start tenure “about a thousand or so Investigations…to about 1,400 to the end of last year…and 2,000 now” … it is beyond frustrating that all of my meticulous research is now gone. Because at the time - I think I was one of only four people (at the time) on Twitter sounding the Alarm RMVEs presented.
Other Documents/Resources;
May 2, 2019 Senators letter to Barr and Wray concerning the Inadequate Effort To Combat White Supremacist Violence
August 8, 2019 -Senators Durbin, Booker letter to Barr and Wray -Inadequate Effort To Combat White Supremacist Terrorism
December 17, 2019 -House Homeland Security ranking member Thompson’s letter to the F.B.I….in light of additional reporting on the Bureau’s controversial “Black Identity Extremists” (BIEs) classification.
May 29, 2020 the Justice Department Letter to House Homeland Security Committee.
House Hearing, 116th Congress — GLOBAL TERRORISM: THREATS TO THE HOMELAND, PART II
February 5, 2020 Director Wray’s written testimony before the House Judiciary Committee “Hearing Oversight FBI”
September 17, 2020 Director Wray’s Statement - Before the House Homeland Security Committee
In short, unless you’ve been living completely off-the-grid or under a rock - then the recently declassified Report should not come as a surprise, the writing has been on the wall for years.
-Filey
Department of Justice, ODNO and DHS joint statement - via OPA. Last visited March 17, 2021 https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/odni-doj-and-dhs-release-unclassified-summary-assessment-domestic-violent-extremism and link to the Report https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1376981/download
"The assessment that RMVEs are more likely to carry out a “mass casualty event” whereas MVEs tend to target law enforcement - is a fascinating assessment."
Agree. This is a WOW.
And thank you for the glossary, Mic. I keep referencing it as I wade through your work this morning.
Fascinating. The threat level is the same as ISIS. You did sound this alarm, and from the outside looking in, it is very obvious that these groups pose a huge danger. It's no wonder that the previous administration did nothing since these people are its base.